


Tom, Dick & Harry

by Karieauthoress (ksrandomme), ksrandomme



Series: Cliche [1]
Category: The Sentinel
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-03-26
Updated: 2009-03-26
Packaged: 2017-10-19 11:04:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,833
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/200135
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ksrandomme/pseuds/Karieauthoress, https://archiveofourown.org/users/ksrandomme/pseuds/ksrandomme
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Blair's started dating again. Jim's surprised that the dates are men. And why is it they have to be such sleezebags?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tom, Dick & Harry

On Monday, it was Thomas. He was of a nice sort, a neat and tidy appearance as well as a polite attitude. Jim disliked him immediately. The guy fidgeted too much. From the first twitch into the loft to the last fumble of a hand on Blair’s back as they stepped out on their… date… Jim was suspicious of the guy that had knocked on the door.

  
And since when did Sandburg date guys anyway? The kid had always seemed particular to girls for his extracurricular activities. Well, until Maya returned to crush the young anthropologists’ spirits again… Bitch…

  
So now Blair was dating from the opposite side of the fence. And the one chosen for this first time… at least as far as Jim knew it was the first time… was as shifty as sand. The kid, of course, seemed oblivious to the whole deal and was grinning like the proverbial cat who ate the canary. Jim felt doubtful and wanted very badly to nix the date before it began. But to do that, he would need a better reason than he thought the date was hiding something. Plus, the kid could take care of himself.

  
This is what Jim continued to repeat to himself as the two men left for the night… and Jim was given his night alone with a pot of stew and the impending Jags game on TV. Not what he would have called a fun evening; games weren’t the same anymore without Blair to do commentary.

  


o-O-o

  
It was about an hour later that the phone call came in. Jim picked it up on the first ring.

  
“Ellison.”

  
 _“Hey Jim… Got a small problem…”_

  
“What’s up Sandburg… your date stiff ya?” Jim chuckled lightly.

  
 _“In a way…Didn’t want to call you, but… well could you call my phone and act as if you need me to come home soon?”_

  
Jim sat back in thought for a moment. “This guy giving you the creeps kid?”

  
 _“I’ll explain when I get home, big guy… so could you… um… please?”_

  
Jim hung up the phone and waited about five minutes before dialing Blair’s cell phone from memory. On the third ring, his Guide picked up with a slightly breathy answer.

  
 _“Sandburg…”_

  
“Hey Kid, time to come home, Jags are up by three and it’s only the second quarter.” He could hear the sigh across the phone line as Blair acted as if the call were frustrating him.

  
 _“Yeah, be there in about half an hour, let me go home and change.”_

  
“See you in ten, Darwin.” Jim hung up the phone and sat back with his beer. He could tell that this would be the first and last date with Thomas, he wasn’t sure what had happened but, obviously it was enough to upset his roommate fiercely. Good to know that Jim’s own Blessed Protector feelings weren’t too far off the mark tonight.

  
He was proven one hundred percent correct when the door to the loft swung open and Blair stalked in. As he slammed the door shut and shucked off his jacket, Jim detected the sharp pounding of the kid’s heart coupled with the wave of nervous sweat that rolled off him. The Sentinel in the big man snapped to attention. He quickly shoved down his over protective streak. Sandburg was home and there was no reason to let the Blessed Protector go off on him… yet.

  
“Grab a beer, kid. Game just went into half time.” Jim cocked his head to the side in his listening posture and made note of the slowly calming heart. But now the nerves were giving way to agitation and frustration.

  
“Asshole… Orioles on the Bay… What the fuck was he thinking? Jerk tried to grope me every second of the date… Actually had the audacity to demand a good night kiss…” Blair was babbling. It was a usual occurrence when he was upset. It’s what saved his life during the siege of the PD and during the Lash case.

  
“Want to take that over again and explain a bit better? He took you to the Orioles on the Bay? That’s like a $50 a plate place, isn’t it?” Jim sat forward on the couch as Blair came around to sit on the love seat.

  
“Yeah, and I only had $30 in my pocket when I went out tonight,” Blair sighed. “My first rule on first dates is… we go Dutch on everything.”

  
“Since when, Chuckles?” Jim glared sidelong at the long haired observer.

  
“I’m talking about dates with guys.”

  
Jim nodded once, then cocked his head again. “So you’ve dated guys before?”

  
“I’m an equal opportunity date, Jim… I don’t discriminate in my sex life or my relationships.”

  
“First I’ve heard of it, Buddy… sorry.” Jim relaxed against the cushions again and watched as Blair continued his narrative.

  
“So, I had to whip out my checkbook for dinner tonight…” deep sigh here.  
“So?”

  
“Jim… that was my rent money, man!”

  
Jim smiled. The kid had been trying to pay rent for months and each time something would come up, causing him to dip into it repeatedly. It was a running joke between the roommates.

  
“Forget it Darwin… next time, eh?” He felt, rather than saw the younger man relax on the loveseat. “So, go get your beer already, games about to come back on.”

  
“Not a good idea, Man… didn’t eat much at the restaurant… was too concerned about the price…” Blair blanched visibly. Alcohol on a nearly empty stomach was never a good idea any day of the week. Jim nodded once and stood swiftly, making his way into the kitchen and grabbing a bowl from the cabinet. By the time the game started, he had plunked a bowl of stew in his Guide’s lap and settled a bottle of beer on the low table before him.

  
“Eat, enjoy the game with me… I was feeling a little off about that guy anyway… too rich for your blood Casanova…”

  
Blair stared at the bowl of stew, glanced at the beer, then turned those incredibly blue eyes on his roommate. “Man, you are too good to me sometimes.”

  
Jim chuckled. “So, I take it, given this guy’s obviously clueless take on the situation, should he arrive on our doorstep again, I should show him the way out?”

  
“And none too gently, if you please!” Guide looked at Sentinel and Sentinel nodded once.

  
That was on Monday.

  


o-O-o

  
On Friday, it was Dixon. Although not as shifty as Thomas had been, there was still something about the 6 foot 2 inch blond that set Jim’s teeth on edge. The man didn’t walk in; so much as he slid in on invisible skates. His smile was toothy, as one would imagine a shark’s would be. His tailored suit hung on his well toned frame, the picture of GQ elegance.

  
As Jim stood in the kitchen assessing his Guide’s latest date, he consciously turned his hearing towards the French doors that blocked off view of said Guide’s room and recognized the mutterings of a distressed Sandburg.

  
 _“Great, just perfect Sandburg. Your first date with the assistant records keeper of the Public Defender's office and you pop a button on your best shirt!”_

  
‘Ut oh!’ thought Jim. Setting his beer down on the kitchen counter, he stepped out of the dining area and hot footed it up the stairs to the loft bedroom. He rummaged in his closet for a moment, found what he was searching for and jogged back down the stairs again. Shark Boy wasn’t paying much attention to him as he opened one of the French doors and tossed the wad of cloth into the room, slamming the door shut behind him again.

  
 _“Thanks man!”_ came the Sentinel soft reply. Jim turned his attention back to Dixon just as the man shifted feet. And what kind of a name was Dixon anyway? Wasn’t that the name of Captain Picard’s favorite character on Star Trek?

  
“Blair, Babe! We don’t want to be late for our reservations!” called the blond. The cop smiled.

  
“Where are you two headed tonight?”

  
“Hannigans,” was the reply. Jim nodded once, frowning on the inside but keeping a perfect poker face up on the outside. “You ever been there?”

  
As a matter of fact, Jim had been there a time or two. Like Orioles, it was a very expensive restaurant. Jim slipped Sandburg’s coat off the rack, slipped a couple bills in the kid’s pocket and turned to hand it to him when he heard the door open to the kid’s room. He stopped suddenly on sight of his Guide.

  
The kid was… breathtaking. Dark slacks belted at his slender waist, the bright blue shirt that Jim had let him borrow was buttoned at the neck and wrists. Black loafers on his feet… and his hair… his hair flowed around his face, giving him an ethereal countenance.

  
“Blair, baby!” Dixon grinned beside Jim, the gleam of his teeth nearly blinding. “Better do something about that hair. People are gonna think you’re a girl.”

  
Jim blinked. Blair? A girl? Not in this lifetime, that’s for sure! From the wide brow, strong jaw, broad chest, thick arms and taut, sturdy legs, the anthropologist fairly screamed male. And what a male he was. Smart, quick, loyal and honest, that was his partner. And, damnit, Jim liked it when Blair wore his long hair free.

  
But instead, the young man nodded once, reached into his pants pocket, and in short order born of years of practice had his hair pulled back into a tight pony tail. Now he looked much younger than his 26 years. Jim suppressed a sigh as he watched Dixon put an arm around HIS Blair and escort the young man out of the loft. With the door shut, Jim felt the uncomfortable feeling of sinking in his stomach and flopped on the couch to sit in silence for the rest of the night.

  


o-O-o

  
The first indication that Sandburg’s date had been anything but enchanting was the slamming of the door 45 minutes after the anthropologist had gone out of it. Jim sat up sharply on the sofa and glanced over his shoulder as the blur that was his partner made a bee-line for his room beneath the stairs.

  
“Chief?”

  
There was no answer from the bedroom. Jim stood and slipped stealthily up to the French doors. “Kid?”

  
 _“Not now,_ ” came the muffled answer. Jim nodded quietly. Of course, the kid would need to ‘process’ the evening. But that didn’t mean that the cop wouldn’t stay available as a sympathetic ear or a shoulder to cry on.

  
“If you want… there’s beer… in the fridge.” The big man paused in thought, and then went back to the sofa and sat, waiting. He didn’t have to wait long. First, he heard the door open, the sounds of shuffling from the bedroom to the fridge, and finally Blair was at the couch, one hand draped over the back and handing something to Jim. He glanced over to his left, recognizing the $50 he had slipped into Blair’s jacket before they left.

  
“Made it to Hannigan’s… and ran into his old boyfriend… who proceeded to dress me down as a man stealer… I had enough money to call a cab… when I pulled my keys out of my pocket is when I came across the $50… Thanks again, man.” And with that, the young man went back to his room and firmly shut the door.

  
That was Friday.

  


o-O-o

  
It was another week before Sandburg went on another date. This time the guy in question… Harold… didn’t send Jim’s Blessed Protector signals off. He seemed genuinely interested in dating Blair. And he was quiet… almost too much so. Still, Blair seemed happy with the evening’s plans, so Jim didn’t say anything. But somewhere on the inside, the big cop was concerned that this date would end much like the last two had. And if that happened, what would it do to the young man’s confidence? Jim wasn’t too thrilled to find out.

  
He kept telling himself that a happy Guide made for a happy Sentinel as Blair and his date, Harold, left for the evening… but he didn’t believe it. Blair seemed to be a happy Guide but Jim was no happy Sentinel. He wanted Blair to find happiness. He wanted his friend to find love… It wasn’t as if the kid asked for much from life… It was what any normal human being longed for.

It was something that Blair Sandburg was destined to continue missing. Half an hour saw the return of a very agitated Sandburg and a very annoying Harold. Jim, of course, heard them as they came up the stairs.

  
 _“What made you think that a burger and fries from Wonderburger would constitute as a suitable first date with me?”_ That would be Blair, of course.

  
 _“Well, you were the one to set the parameters of our dates,”_ Harold replied.

  
 _“Excuse me?”_ Blair and Jim were thinking the same thing here. Where did this stuff come from anyway?

  
 _“You were the one to insist that our first date be Dutch.”_ Jim grimaced at the implications that Harold made with that statement.

  
 _“So, you were thinking what? That grease was cheap?”_ Third floor landing now. Jim stood and walked over to the door, waiting patiently.

  
“You and I both know what a TA’s stipend amounts to… and I remember your Corvair is constantly in the shop.” Harold was trying to explain, but even Jim wasn’t entirely happy with it.

  
“Look man, I am not that bad off!” Blair was at the door now and Jim opened it for him calmly. Harold took a step into the loft only to stop short at Jim’s stern look. Jim shut the door softly and waited there, pinning Harold with a glare that could freeze blood. Blair wasn’t finished. “I don’t need you or anyone else feeling sorry for me. And of all the places to go, a hamburger joint is the LAST place I would enjoy!”

  
“Well, according to your previous dates, you seem to have trouble with more reasonable places!” Harold cried, raising his voice an octave at the end.

  
Jim bristled visibly. Enough was more than enough! He reached out, opened the door, shoved Harold out into the hall and slammed the door in his face. Feeling slightly better, the cop turned back to face his agitated partner.

  
“The nerve of that guy! What gave him the right to check up on my previous dates? And to assume that I couldn’t hold my own in a decently priced restaurant!”

  
Jim waited patiently for the other man to slow down. As he rambled on and on about selfish, inconsiderate pricks who worked in computer labs down at the Cascade PD, the big man opened the fridge and pulled out two beers. He opened them, handed one to his partner and then steered them both to the couch to sit and relax. Blair, in the mean time, talked himself down to a whisper. They sat silently for long minutes, sipping beer and thinking. Jim was the first to break the silence.

  
“If at first you don’t succeed..?” Jim glanced to his right, noticing the grimace that came over Blair’s face.

  
“More like, three strikes and you’re out.”

  
Jim let his breath out slowly. Three strikes… baseball analogies… not a good sign. “I don’t know Chief… I say you give it another chance.”

  
Blair thought it over for a few minutes, sipping his beer and remaining oddly silent. Finally, he spoke up quietly.

  
“If I give it another shot, what’s to say that I won’t be disappointed again?”

  


o-O-o

  
And that was the last time they spoke of it for a week… then two weeks… and no more dating with men or women. Blair Sandburg was giving up, it would seem. And Jim Ellison was at a loss as to what he should do.

  
To say that he cared about the young man was an understatement. _And if anyone said anything to the effect that I was in love with my roommate/partner, I’d part their hair with a bullet, cleanly._ But the truth was he could very well imagine a life with Blair, a love life even. The problem was did the kid have any of the same sorts of feelings for him?

  
He could always ask the man… _Oh yeah, that would go over as well as a lead balloon…_ Ok, so asking was out… But what if he did something else? Like, send the kid a gift, get his reaction? It was then that Jim came up with the idea of romancing Blair… and not just any sort of wooing, this would be an acknowledgment of what the younger man meant to the older cop. How he completed him, how… Jim recognized and understood Blair.

  
He decided to start immediately.  



End file.
